Men's Basketball | 11/21/2013 8:04:00 PM

WOU GAME NOTES         DSC GAME NOTES         GNAC WEEKLY RELEASE

MONMOUTH, Ore. – The Western Oregon University men's basketball team has arguably one of the toughest schedules in NCAA Div. II this season. The slate gets no easier this week as the WOU host No. 15 Dixie State College (Utah) Saturday.

The Wolves (2-2) have already played a pair of teams that appeared in last year's NCAA Div. II West Regional Tournament, and plays a third Saturday. Dixie State enters this week's matchup with its highest ranking in program history. The Red Storm already owns impressive victories this season after just three games. DSC opened the season with a win at NCAA Div. I UNLV, and in its last game, upset then-ranked No. 2 Seattle Pacific in overtime on the road.

The Red Storm (3-0) won the SPU Sodexo Tipoff Classic with victories over GNAC members, Central Washington and Seattle Pacific. DSC is averaging 93.7 points per game, behind five players averaging double-digits, led by Zach Robbins' 17 points per outing. Dixie State has been near flawless through its first trio of contests. It is making 55 percent of its shots from the field and 52 percent from behind-the-arc.

"Dixie State comes in as good as advertised, if not better," WOU Head Coach Brady Bergeson said. "They're extremely good, they're deep, they're experienced, and they're going to give us everything we can handle. All we can do is prepare and be ready. I'm confident in our group. We have a good group and I think with enough preparation, we will be ready."

Dixie State is averaging 34.7 rebounds per game, with a +2.7 rebound margin. Jordan Rex leads the team at 7.7 rebounds per contest. Robbins also adds seven rebounds per outing. The junior has made 20 of his 25 shots this season. Kimball Payne is dishing out five assists per game. Dequan Thompson is adding 16.7 points per contest.

"Dixie has a lot of size," Bergeson said. "They have a point guard that really kind of makes them go. He delivers the ball and is the prototypical point guard. They also have a great deal of strength. They have a big frontline with 6-9, 6-10, and a couple of guys at 6-8 backing them up. And, they're wings are big and talented. They just have a great balance to make a run at the region."

After upsetting then-ranked No. 7 Cal Poly Pomona, Western Oregon had a 71-59 loss to Cal State-Dominguez Hills in the Cougar Classic in Azusa, Calif., last Saturday. Rodney Webster led WOU with 18 points. He made six of his 13 shots from the field. Devon Alexander scored 13 points and Marwan Sarhan added 11. The Toros made 48 percent of their shots from the field, and held WOU to 36 percent. CSUDH outrebounded the Wolves, 40-27.

Webster and Sarhan are looking for their fourth double-digit scoring performances in the first five games of the season. Sarhan has made 20 of his first 23 free throw attempts this season. Adam Hastings' .692 field goal percentage leads the GNAC currently. The junior has made 18 of his 26 attempts from the field. The Wolves' .424 field goal percentage defense currently leads the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.

Western Oregon won the lone meeting in the all-time series with Dixie State. In the 2008-09 season opener for both programs, the Wolves picked up the 79-71 victory at home. Sam Kelly led all scorers with 22 points for WOU. Blair Wheadon opened his collegiate career with 17 points. The game featured seven ties and 15 lead changes, with Dixie State leading 32-26 at halftime.

The game will be the home opener for the Western Oregon men this season. WOU opens its 43rd season in the New P.E. Building against Dixie State College. The Wolves are 8-2 in their last 10 home openers. Saturday's tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. The game will have live video and stats on WOUWolves.com. Fans can bring two non-perishable food items and receive one dollar off a general admission ticket.